Hoisting-tower.



T. S. WATSON.

HOISTTNG TOWER.

APPLICATION FILED IIAR.24. 1917.

Patented Nov. 12, 1918..

3 SHEETS-SHEET I. 27

T. S. WATSON.

HOISTING TOWER.

APPLICATION FILED MAR.24. 1911.

Patented Nov. 12, 1918.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

T. S. WATSON.

HOISTING TOWER.

APPLICATION FlLED MAR.24,1917.

Patented Nov. 12, 1918..

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3- J9@ HOIS'IING-TOWEB.

Lacasse'.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patenten New. i2, rais.

Application filed March 24, 1917. Serial No. 157,221.

To all whom it may concern: v

Be it known that I, THOMAS' S. WATSON, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Milwaukee, inthecounty of Milwaukee and State of Wisconsin, have invented new and' useful Improvements in Holsting- Towers, of which the following is a description, reference being ,had to the accompanying drawings, which are apart of this speciication.

This invention has for its object to provide a lcoal handling hoisting mechanism particularly designed for use with towers having carriages capable of only a short travel and relates to such hoisting mechanism having the hoisting drum and its motor and the closing drum and its associated lparts positioned in the tower proper, thus relieving the carriage of the weight thereof and simplifying the structure, rendering it less expensive to manufacture and to maintain. v

With `the above and ,other objects in view the invention consists in the hoisting tower as herein claimed and all equivalents.

Referring to the accompanying drawing in which like characters of reference indicate the -same parts in different views:

Figure 1 is an elevation of a hoisting tower constructed in accordance with this invention. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the hoisting engine platform thereof. l

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the racking motor platform.

Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the magnetic` clutch for coupling the hoisting drum to -tbe closing drum.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of thehoisting engine platform-v showing a preferred ar-l rangement of the parts; and,

Fig. 6 is a diagram of a modilied roping scheme for the invention.

In these drawingslO indicates a tower or other suitable supporting structure .and 11 is the boom or carrier support projecting therefrom and on the tracks of which a carriage 12 is mounted to travel-back and forth. As herein shown a racking motor 13 with its drum 14 geared thereto is mounted on a platform 15 of the tower and a cable 16 wound around said drum passes around a pulley 17 at the outer end of the boom and is then connected to the carriage 12.

On another latform 18 of the tower is mounted what 1s known as the hoisting ento form a loop,24 between them, which loop is carried up over idle pulleys-25 and has a counterweight 26 suspended therein. The two ends of the cable are likewise carried up over idle pulleys 27 at the top of the tower and then around idle pulleys 28 of the carriage 12 and have a clam shell bucket '29 suspended therefrom, the cable end 30 from thehoisting drum 22 being known as the holding line and connecting with the supporting ring of the bucket, while the cable end 31 from the closing drum 20, known as the closing line, connects with the opening 4 land closing mechanism of the bucket. The

cable is wound around the drums 20 and 22 in such a manner that when they are coupled together by their magnetic clutch 32 the holding line and the closing line move in unison to raise or lower the bucket according to the direction of rotation of the hoisting motor. l

In operation the racking motor, the hoisting motor', the clutch andthe brake may be controlled by suitable switch mechanism contained in an operators cab 33 or at any desirable location, and by means thereof the carriage may first be moved out on` the boom to a position above the hatch of a vessel 34 containing the material to be unloaded and -then, with the brake set and the clutch released, the hoisting motor is rotated as if to lower the bucket but as long as the holding line is held by the brake this only serves to give slack to the closing line, thus permit- -ting the bucket to open by the weight of its parts in the usual manner. With the bucket open the clutch is engaged and the brake released, when a further operation of the hoisting motor in the same direction causes the bucket to drop until it rests on the material below. Now the hoisting motor is reversed with the clutch released and the brake set, causing all the draft to be applied to the closing line so that the bucket is closed, its parts scooping up the material therein. The brake is then released while the clutch is set and the bucket is raised while the counter-weight is lowered. The racking motor 13 is' operated to move the carnage on the boom4 either nearer t0 0r farther from the tower and when the bucket is over the desired place for depositing the load the brake is set, while the hoisting motor is operated. as if to '-lower the bucket, but this again only serves to roduce-A slack in the closing'line which ena lesy the bucket to open and dro itscontents. In this open position the bue et is returned and dropped into the material as before.

It is obvious-that the arrangement of the drums may be varied without departingv from the invention. p For instance the closin drum may be directly geared Ato the hoisting motor and the holding drum may have a clutch connection therewith or with the motorl shaft. This is illustrated in Fig. 5 where the hoisting motor 35' is directlyr geared with the closing drum 36 and 1s coupled by a clutch 37 ywith the gear of a holding drum 38, the magnetic brake 39 being also geared to said holding drum. With this construction the operation is the same as before.

It is also obvious that other ropingA schemes may be employed as, for instance,v

that shown in F ig. 6, wherein the holding and closing lines, instead of being taken over idle pulleys at the top of the. tower, are carried out on the boom, or, in the case of a bridge, along the line of travel of the carriage, and between idle pulleys 40 on the carriage they form loops in which the clamshell bucket 29 is suspended, the holding line 30 passing through the supporting ring ofthe bucket, while the closing line 31 passes through the 'opening and closing mechanism of the bucket. Both of these lines are dead-ended at the outer end ofthe boom. The two lines may be counterweighted as before or only one may be counterweighted, in which event a cable 24: from that drum which is provided with the mag-` netic brake is. carried over an idle pulley 41 and has the counterweight 26 suspended therefrom, either at its end or in a loop thereof as shown.

In all of the forms of the invention the carriage is relieved of the weight of the hoisting and closing drums and their operating and retarding means, with a consequent saving in the cost of construction as well as in the expense of operation. Furthermore, the raising and lowering and the opening and closing of the-bucket is accomplished by means 0f one motor, insteadof requiring a separate motor for each drum. In that form of the invention shown in Fig. 1, the y.

and a closing drum mounted on the supporting structure and having the holding line and the closing line wound thereon respectively, a gear wheel carried by each drum, a

4 motor having its motor shaft geared tothe gear wheel of the holding drum, a magnetic clutch controlled lpinion. meshing with the gear wheel of the holding drum and adapted to be coupled with the motor shaft, and a magnetic brake connected with the holding drum.

'2. In a device for elevating and transporting material, a supporting structure, a carriage traveling thereon, a clam-shell bucket,l

holding and closing lines having connection with the bucket and passing through .the carriage, a hoisting drum and a closing drum mounted on the supporting structure and having the holding'line and the closing line wound thereon respectively, a gear wheel carried by each drum, an electric motor, pinions on the motor shaft meshing with' the gear wheels respectiveligtf, one -pinlon being fixed on the motor sha ,a magnetic clutch for controlling the driving connection betweenthe other pinion and the motor shaft, and a magnetic brake for the gear wheel which meshes with the clutch controlled pinion.

In testlmony whereof, I affix my signature v two witnesses. .y

THOMAS S. WATSON. Witnesses: f

R. S. C. CALDWELL, H. D. CHASE.

in presence of 

